Water waste detectives

Our dedicated team at the Dazhulin brewery in China has made it their mission to dramatically reduce water waste. The brewery, one of our priority sites for water risk, is located within the Yangtze river basin.

The team scrutinised brewing and packing processes, checked all water pipes to detect any leaks, inefficiencies or blind spots, and installed more water meters to get a fuller picture of water use in specific areas of production.

They also asked employees at every level to use their experience to share ideas for saving water. Based on this analysis, the team introduced measures such as reusing water in cleaning processes and using less water in bottle washing and pasteurisation. These have delivered big results for little additional cost.

In just four months, the team reduced water used in beer production by 18% – from 2.7 to 2.2 hl/hl. Dazhulin’s striking success brings the brewery close to achieving our 2022 target to explore going below 2.0 hl/hl at sites in areas of high water risk. We are now sharing the team’s approach and lessons learned as best practice across our breweries.